Lawyer Disbarred for $3,500-an-Hour Fee and ‘Bizarre Behavior’
A Kansas City lawyer has been disbarred for charging a soldier a fee of $3,500 an hour, shouting profanities at court clerks, brawling with court security officers and suggesting that a judge is pedophile.
The Kansas Supreme Court disbarred lawyer Carlos Romious on Monday, according to the National Law Journal and the Legal Profession Blog.
In the military case, Romious had originally agreed to represent the soldier for a flat $3,500 fee, but later claimed the amount was his hourly charge, the NLJ story says. In a different case of “abusive and bizarre behavior,” the court says, Romious asked a judge whether he was a pedophile and said, “You’re going to sit up there with the audacity and the smugness of your holiness.”
The court also cited conflicts with courthouse personnel. In one, Romious brawled with security officers after he set off a magnetometer. In another, he called a court clerk a “f—ing bitch,” said he wanted to “ “f—ing” file his papers, and declared that he was smarter than anyone in the clerk’s office.
The Legal Profession Blog posted the opinion (PDF). The court said Romious’ behavior had resulted in two criminal convictions and a contempt citation.
